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A review by ladyheroj
Mystery Society by Steve Niles
4.0
This was an impulse buy. The spine somehow caught my eye as I was wandering through a local discount comic book store, and as soon as I saw Fiona Staples' name, it was off the shelf and in my hands.
And the art does not let down, at all. I loved the chance to see some pre-Saga work of Staples. The style in Mystery Society is more "sketchy" and the colors more muted, but it has all her signature imaginative flair which is what a story like Mystery Society needs.
But the story...I will say much the same as others have said in their reviews before me. It lacks tension and depth. It's fun, but it lacks that something to make it great. Perhaps it is the lack of focus that keeps this novel from really "clicking". The characters (at least those in the Society) are fantastic. Nick and Ana are a wonderful couple, the twins are adorable, Secret Skull is badass, and Verne is...interesting. But the story splits into the main plot, a lackluster conspiracy theory with Nick, Ana, and the girls, and into the subplot of Skull and Verne retrieving Poe's stolen skull. The villians in both are weak in personality and motive, and the subplot doesn't get the attention it deserves to have with characters like Skull and Verne. Nor does it tie in to the main plot, which I wouldn't have minded if there was simply more of Mystery Society. But as it's a limited five-issue series, it can't really get away with having a "filler" plot-line. (Although the 2013 special included in this volume shows that there is potential for this group of oddball characters to keep having adventures.)
I would recommend Mystery Society for the art, and for the wonderful main characters, even if the story does hinder their potential from being fully realized.
And the art does not let down, at all. I loved the chance to see some pre-Saga work of Staples. The style in Mystery Society is more "sketchy" and the colors more muted, but it has all her signature imaginative flair which is what a story like Mystery Society needs.
But the story...I will say much the same as others have said in their reviews before me. It lacks tension and depth. It's fun, but it lacks that something to make it great. Perhaps it is the lack of focus that keeps this novel from really "clicking". The characters (at least those in the Society) are fantastic. Nick and Ana are a wonderful couple, the twins are adorable, Secret Skull is badass, and Verne is...interesting. But the story splits into the main plot, a lackluster conspiracy theory with Nick, Ana, and the girls, and into the subplot of Skull and Verne retrieving Poe's stolen skull. The villians in both are weak in personality and motive, and the subplot doesn't get the attention it deserves to have with characters like Skull and Verne. Nor does it tie in to the main plot, which I wouldn't have minded if there was simply more of Mystery Society. But as it's a limited five-issue series, it can't really get away with having a "filler" plot-line. (Although the 2013 special included in this volume shows that there is potential for this group of oddball characters to keep having adventures.)
I would recommend Mystery Society for the art, and for the wonderful main characters, even if the story does hinder their potential from being fully realized.